By Patrick Appel
Michael Crowley documents McCain's campaign against ultimate fighting:
Ultimate fighting sprang up in the early 1990s with a flurry of neck chops, spleen blows, and roundhouses to the face. Goldman, a longtime sports commentator, was an early fan and evangelist; McCain was an early and vociferous critic. He condemned the sport as "human cockfighting," leaned on cable companies not to televise it, and sought to ban it nationwide. "It's an abuse of power story!" fumes Goldman. "The vehemence of McCain's position had no rational explanation."